Fabrication of lamp shades and the like



Dec. 2; 1941. J BROWN 2,265,111

FABRICATION OF LAMP SHADES AND THE LIKE Filed July 6, 1940 i isri 11a49' 14a 29 B E 5 1a 511 I 2% o H I I I r l 1r 10 UL 3' 75a L 1 5 5 15b16 a 16 1 a INVENTOR. .fo s'e afi 17. Brown Patented Dec. 2 1941QFFICQ-E.

FABRICATION OF LAMP SHADES'AND THE LIKE ioseph H. Brown, New York, .N.Y.

Application July 6, 1940, Serial No. 344,203

Claims.

This invention relates to the fabrication of lamp-shades and the like,.and has been made particularly with the idea of providing a new andimproved method of and apparatus for performing rapidly, economically.and perfectly an operation "which heretofore has been somewhat of aproblem in the art of lamp-shade making and especially makinglamp-shades of the socalled wall-bracket .or boudoir-lamp type;

Accordingly, the invention .will be explained in connectionwithlamp-shades of the kind just named, although there is :no reason whythe invention would :not be of equal value in the making of shades forfloor-lamps or other shades of fairly largesize.

Thus, in herein referring to a lamp-shade, there is meant either thelamp-shade proper of a flame-carrying lampshade, that is, the canopy-like covering spread :or supported by an interior skeletal frame generallyof bent wire and familiar inthe art :of shades for floor-lamps, or

a lamp-shade which is made from a tubular blank, with the tube made fromone or a plutallty of pieces suitably joined together, by forming orshaping the tube and at the same time giving a certain treatment wherebythe shade will be wholly or partiallyself-sustaining or more or less setfor retention of the contours to which it was for-med or shaped. As willbe understood, such a permanently and more or less rigidly shapedtubular blank lamp-shade is adapted to reston rather than :be held toshape by a bent wire or other internal support; and, as will also beunderstood, this support can be of the kind which is so :simply andcheaply constructed that r it man rest .on the upper part of anupstanding electric light bulb.

The present invention is of prime utility where the lamp-shade is of thetype last-described, and the invention will be explained as applied toperforming certain operations in making the same.

'These operations are those whereby, with the tubular blank ofCelluloid, cellulose acetate, or some other material which is acellulosic derivative, or of some other material suitable for pleatingand extensible after pleating, without loss of its "pleated form, andwith this tubular blank pleated all around by pleats running lengthwiseof the tube, the tube can be rapidly, economically and perfectly rufiledall around such end, to adapt the said end to be the bottom of a more orless bell-shaped lamp-shade.

By the present invention, this ruffling is done simultaneously at allpoints of ruflle-curvature all around the lamp-shade bottom, and withoutdestroying the pleated formations except that, naturally, the latter aremade shallower at the points, of maximum undulation of the milling andare less and less thus shallowed from the line of the pointslast-mentioned, that is, from the bottom edge of the lamp-shade, upalong the latter to the points of merging of the upper ends of theruflies with the unrufiled periphery of the pleated tubular blank.

An important feature of the invention, as "the same is preferablycarried out, is that during the milling operation as above, the lowerend of the tubular blank, all around the same, is held tu- 1 bular' andto :a generally downward outward flare. By this feature, there is nochance of forming undesired crease-lines, of disturbing the pleatings.in a way unintended, or of having different portions spaced.circumferentially around the tube subjected to the heat and. pressurestep of the-invention while said portions are in face to face contact.

The heat and pressure step just mentioned is a step which is used incarrying out the method of the invention in the now approved way.

The :method, when carried out with heat and pressure, .or otherwise, andthe entire invention, will beclearly understood from .the followingdescription, taken in connection with the accompanying .drawing.

= The annexed drawing illustrates a formof apparatus .as now preferredand as successfully operated over a number of months, for facilitatingthe practice of the method .of the invention. In this drawing:

.Fig. 1 :is :a view mainly in side elevation, .but partially in:section,of said apparatus or machine, showing :a tubular blank in place, butwith the machine only preliminarily adjusted for a ruffiing operation onsaid blank;

Fig. 2 is asimilar view, showing certain of the partsin Fig. 41, withthe machine in a later adjustment;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary plan view, looking down on the .parts as shownin Fig. l, and in the direction of the arrow 3 of that view, but withthe'blankrremoved;

Fig. 4 is a perspective View of the pleated tubular blank beforesubjection to the machine; and

Elg. 5 is a similar view showing the milled product.

Referring first to the details of construction of the. machineillustrated, the same includes a tabla-top ID, supported on legs H.Carried by of a circumferential series of radially extended.

presser-fingers l5, the bottom portions of which are convexly rounded soas to conform to the concave roundings of the portions Nb of the block,or, rather, sufllciently to conform to the roundings of the portions |4bto coaot with the latter in milling the lower end of a blank B, asindicated at B, when said blank is arranged as in Fig. 1, and thefingers I5 are forced down tight against the fiared lower portion of theblank, as indicated at B".

The fingers I5 are pivotally mounted as indicated at It, and they haveradial horizontal extensions |5a beyond their pivots terminally bossedat l5b. All the fingers are urged toward the position shown in Fig. 1 byexpansible coil springs Overlying all the bosses |5b of the fingers I5is a ring |8 connected at a plurality of points around its periphery,and by draw rods l9, to a floating horizontal frame 20. Rods l9, belowthe ring |8, pass through suitable openings in table-top IE; below whichopenings the rods have stop-collars 2| fixed thereon, and above whichopenings the rods are sleeved by expansible coil springs 22.

From the floating frame depends a link 23 connected at its lower end toa lever 24 pivoted to the table at 25 and carrying a treadle 26.

Rigidly upstanding from the top of the table is a framing 2'! of gibbettype, the top beam 28 of which carries, in vertical alinement with thelongitudinal center line of a metal tube 29 mounted as shown on blockl4, a bearing 30 for a vertical slide-rod 3|. The top of this rod isprovided with a'knob 32, and between the beam 28 and said knobrod 3| issleeved by an expansible spring 33. This spring is desirably ofconsiderable length,and is under comparatively weak tension. As to thelength of the spring, it is pointed out that with the parts as arrangedin Fig. 1, that is, with the cone-device 34 on the lower end of the rodwhere the latter projects below the beam 28, the knob 32 must be highenough above the beam 28 so that said beam will not be interferent withfull or considerable compression of the spring 33, when the rod 3| islowered to the extent required not only to cause descent of thecone-device 34 to the position shown in Fig. 2 (where it first engagesthe top of the blank), but to a point still lower, that is, low enoughto force the lower part of the-tube B to the spread shown at B in Fig.1.

As, as has already been stated, it is preferred to use heat as well aspressure (thus to avoid the use of a solvent or an added adhesive; inother words to work according to the invention on a pleated tube B whichis made of a thermoplastic material) and a means for heating the blockI4 by radiation, and for also heating the fingers l5 by conduction fromthe block before the first 'rufiling operation, and for maintaining thefingers properly heated by heat conducted from the block it during thetimes between successive rufiling operations, is shown at 35. In thepresent case this means is illustrated as a resistance element raised tothe proper temperature by electricity; the leads for maintaining thesame in circuit being indicated at 3B.

The cone-device 34 comprises an upper circular horizontal plate 34a, acone 34b, and a bottom disk 34c.

Operation:

With the parts arranged as in Fig. 1, a, blank, such as the blank B ofFig. 4, is distended to rotundity, and in the present case, in view ofthe fact that the tube or mandrel 29 is cylindrical,

to circular distension, and then one end, or a particularly decoratedend, of this blank, is endwisely advanced toward the top of the mandrelsufiiciently to mount the blank on the upper end of the mandrel withsuflicient overlap at the upper end of the mandrel to hold the upper endof the blank to a substantially circular distension.

Then, by means of the knob 32, the cone-device 34 is'lowered until thecone-device 34b enters the upper end of the blank and the under-surfaceof the plate or disk 34a engages the upper circum-- ferential edge ofthe blank. Hand pressure on the knob 32 is continued until the blank hasbeen forced down first to the position shown in Fig. 2 and then to thefully fiared position shown in Fig. 1, meanwhile the fingers I5 havingbeen thrown to the positions shown in Fig. 2, by foot pressure appliedto the treadle 26.

Now, upon manual release of the knob 32, the spring 33 returns the rod3| and the parts carried thereby to the positions shown in Fig. 1.

Foot pressure on the treadle 26 is released, and the fingers l5 returnto the positions illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3; the pressure now beingapplied to the lower flared portion B" by conjoint action of the fingersI5 and the complementary former portions |4b of the block l4, being, ashas been found preferable, rather high. In other words, the springs I!are fairly powerful ones.

A feature of the invention, as the same is preferably carried out, isthat both the sets of former units Mo and |5 are heated during theoperation of rufiling an end of the blank. Another feature of theinvention, in this connection, is that the heating means employed, forinstance, the electric resistance element 35, need be only a single suchelement, with the latter so adjacent one of the sets of said units, asto heat said set. The most practical set to select for receiving heatfrom the heat source employed, is the set of units Mb of the block l4,since all these parts are com-: ponents of a unitary structure. It hasbeen found that in such case, since the fingers I5, even when theapparatus is idle, normally contact the block I4, but a very shortperiod of time is requiredto have the fingers l5 heated to an idealtemperature, in preparation for working on the first blank of a days runof operation of the machine. As will be understood, the fingers [5 areheated by conduction from the block l4.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art, after understanding myinvention as embodied in the illustrative structure shown in theaccompanying drawing, that various changes and modifications may be madetherein, without departing from the spirit and true scope of myinvention. Parts of the improvements may be used without others. The.scope of protection contemplated is to be taken from the appendedclaims, interpreted as broadly as is consistent with the prior art.

What I claim as new, and desire to protect by Letters Patent of theUnited States, is:

1. The method of rufliing and belling an end of a longitudinally pleatedtube of elastic and thermoplastic material, said method consisting ofmoving an end of the pleated tube over an element of graduallyincreasing diameter from one end thereof toward the other provided withspaced longitudinally extending depressions in the periphery thereof,the small end of said element having a diameter substantially equal tothe internal diameter of said tube, and said element being heatedsufficiently to render the material of said end plastic whereby said endis expanded, maintaining the remainder of the tube at its originaldiameter and applying inwardly acting pressures to the exterior of saidend of the tube at points around said tube end corresponding with thedepressions in said element.

2. The method of ruffling and belling an end of a longitudinally pleatedtube of elastic and thermoplastic material, said method consisting offirst belling one end of the tube by moving the tube to present one endthereof to a rufiling and belling station having spaced longitudinallyextending depressions, applying heat at the station sufiiciently torender the material of said end plastic whereby said end is belledduring movement into position at the ruffling and belling station,retaining the remainder of the tube at its original diameter, and thenruffling said belled end of the tube by applying inwardly actingpressures to the exterior of said belled end of the tube at pointsaround said belled end corresponding with the depressions in saidstation.

3. In apparatus for ruflling and belling an end of a longitudinallypleated tube, the combination with a die block of substantially conicalshape having spaced longitudinally extending depressions in theperiphery thereof, of presser fingers each complementary to andindividually pivoted for swinging movement into and out of a particularone of said depressions, each of said fingers being pivoted on an axisat an angle to the axis of pivoting of the adjacent finger whereby allthe fingers move in radial paths with respect to the axis of the dieblock, a mandrel of substantially the same diameter as the smaller endof the conical block fixed to the smaller end of said block forsupporting the tube during endwise advance thereof to bring the tube endto the block end of lesser diameter, said block being shaped to bellsaid tube, and controlled heating means associated with the die blockfor rendering the end of the tube surrounding the block plastic.

4. In apparatus for ruifiing and belling an end of a longitudinallypleated tube, the combination with a die block of substantially conicalshape having spaced longitudinally extending depressions in theperiphery thereof, of presser fingers each complementary to andindividually pivoted for swinging movement into and out of a particularone of said depressions, each of said fingers being pivoted on an axisat an angle to the axis of pivoting of the adjacent finger whereby allthe fingers move in radial paths with respect to the axis of the dieblock, a mandrel of substantially the same diameter as the smaller endof the conical block fixed to the smaller end of said block forsupporting the tube during endwise advance thereof to bring the tube endto the block end of lesser diameter, said block being shaped to bellsaid tube, controlled heating means associated with the die block forrendering the end of the tube surrounding the block plastic, a thrustmember movable against the other end of the tube to advance the sameover the mandrel, guiding means for the thrust member, independent meansfor forcing said thrust member sufficiently to overcome the elasticresistance of said pleats, and cooperating means carried by said memberand mandrel for limiting the extent of thrust of said member.

5. In apparatus for rufiling and belling an end of a longitudinallypleated tube, the combination with a die block of substantially conicalshape having spaced longitudinally extending depressions in theperiphery thereof, of presser fingers each complementary to andindividually pivoted for swinging movement into and out of a particularone of said depressions, each of said fingers being pivoted on an axisat an angle to the axis of pivoting of the adjacent finger whereby allthe fingers move in radial paths with respect to the axis of the dieblock, a mandrel of substantially the same diameter as the smaller endof the conical block fixed to the smaller end of said block forsupporting the tube during endwise advance thereof to bring the tube endto the block end of lesser diameter, said block being shaped to bellsaid tube, controlled heating means associated with the die block forrendering the end of the tube surrounding the block plastic, a thrustmember movable against the other end of the tube to advance the sameover the mandrel, guiding means for the thrust member, independent meansfor forcing said thrust member sufiiciently to overcome the elasticresistance of said pleats, and cooperating means carried by said memberand mandrel for limiting the extent of thrust of said member, saidmandrel bein hollow and said thrust member having a reduced portionshaped to telescope within the mandrel during advance of the tube alongthe mandrel.

JOSEPH H. BROWN.

